Game apparatus



May 519, 1925.

F. scHuLz GAME APPARATUS Filed Sept. 14, 1922 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Patented May 19, 1925.

FRANK scnULz, or new YORK, N. Y.

GAME arrmros.

- Application filed September 14, 1922. Serial 1Y0. 588,101.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK SCHULZ, being a citizen of the United States, residing 1n the city of New York, county of Richmond and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Game Apparatus,of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to amusement devices ajfording a game of skill, and its chief :object is to provide a device adapted to de liver a prize or. rewar'd. automatically to the winning player. Another object is to provide for the purpose indicated a mechanism of simple and substantial character which can be constructed and operated at low cost. To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features hereinafter del scribed.

In its preferred form the device comprises a target which is kept moving at constant speed and is. to bestruck by a missile or other implement of play, .as for example a ball rolled, thrown or otherwise projected by the player. Preferably the-target is a ro- 'tating' disk having one or more openings through which the ball can be caused to pass if the player exercisesthe requisite skill in gauging the speed of the disk and in proecting and directing the ball. Beyond the target is a trigger in position to be actuated by the ball passed through one of the target apertures, to release a priae-carrierwhich then moves automatically to a .position ,trated in where the player can grasp and remove from the carriage the prize'which his skill has won. I

The embodiment outlined above-is illusthe accompanying drawings, in

which Fig. 1 is a perspective viewof the complete apparatus.

Fig. 2 is a detail central longitudinal section of the rear portion of the apparatus.

Fig. 3 is a similar detail view of a modification.

The tabler10, substantially horizontal in position, is provided at its rear witlra circular opening in which is a target in the form of a disk 11, mounted on a vertical shaft 12 which is rotated at constant speed by any suitable motor, indicated at 13. In front of the target is a downwardly and rearwardly sloping runway or acceleration board or table 14 having side rails 15 which converge, rearwardly ,and present at the edge of the revolving target an escape opening large enough to permit theball, rolling down the acceleration board, to escape and strike the target. The latter is provided at its edge with one or more openings, 11*, each of which is, preferably, just large enough to allow the ball to drop freely through;

. The ball is launched on the acceleration boa-rd bythe player, and since the board is inclined the ball will be accelerated by gravity and will approach thet-ar'get with in-- creasing velocity. The object of the game is to cause the ballto pass through one of the target openings. This it will do if the player has properly directed. the ball and as correctly gauged the acceleration of gravity so that the ball will escape from the board at the rear opening in time with the presentation of one of the target openings thereat. The player may release the ball from his hand with any desired initial velocity, but in any case its final velocity will be determined, in part at least, by the space through which it descends in reaching the target. Of courseifthe runway is arranged to slope downwardly away from the target the effect of gravity would be to decelerate the ball and'the latter would therefore have to be launched with a correspondingly greater initial velocity.

' Passing through one of the target openings the ball falls through a chute 16 and strikes-a pivoted trigger 17 which is there.- by, depressed and through the instrumentality of an arm 18 and link 19 releases a vertical rod 20 mounted to rise and fall in guides-21 and pivotally connected at its upper end to a track or rail 22. The latter is loosely mounted at its forward end in a allows the weight to descend and raise the rear end of the track so that the track now slopes downwardly toward the, front of the apparatus; whereupon the receptacle 27, Fig. 1, suspended from the wheeled carriage 28 on the track, travels by gravity to the playing position at the front of the apparatus, where the player may grasp and remove from the receptacle the prize or reward which his skill has won for him. In the present instance a dressed doll is shown as the prize. When the prize has been removed the attendant depresses the rod 20 until it is again engaged and held by the spring-actuated link 19. This operation lowers the rear end of the track 22 so that the latter now slopes rearwardly, thus causing .the carriage 28 and receptacle 27 to return by gravity to initial position, where another prize may be placed in the receptacle.

its the ball actuates the trigger 17 it rolls into the,-inclined trough 29 and descends therein toward the front of the machine where it may be removed by the attendant and placed in the receptacle 30 or in the smaller enclosure 31, ready for the next player. 32 and another is shown at 33 in the enclosure 31. 1

The revolvingtarget 11 is dished, as indicated, and has a deeper depression at its 7 center, so that a ball which misses the target opening will be trapped on the target and can be readily removed by the attendant. The center depression also insures against theball being thrown ofi the target by centrifugal force. A central boss 34 is provided to prevent the ball from being rolled across the target and possibly dropping into an opening which is not over the chute 16.

In the modification illustrated in Fig. 3 the ball falling into the chute 16 presses spring contact 35 against the fixed contact 36, which clos sthe circuit of solenoid 37. The core 38 is thereby raised, which lifts the rear end of track 22 to the dotted line position so that the carriage (not shown in Fig. 3) can roll by gravity to the front of the machine. The chute 16 may be provided at one side with a gate (not shown) which the attendant can open for convenient removal of the ball as soon as the player has removed the prize. The spring contact 35 then opens the circuitand the core 38 de-' scends by gravity to its normal position on the stop 39, whereupon the carriage rolls back to the rear of the machine for refilling.

Current to energize the solenoid can be taken from an ordinary lighting circuit by plugging into a socket 40. i

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the constructions herein A ball in the trough 29 is shown at assent-e specifically illustrated and described but can be embodied in other forms without departure from its spirit.

I claim: .5

1. In a game apparatus, in combination, a target having an aperture to permit the passage of a missile launched from a playing position, a support on which the target is movably mounted whereby the aperture therein may be carried through a predetermined path, a movable prize-carrier, a support therefor, and means associated with the prize-carrier and located beyond a predetermined pointin the path of said aperture in the target and controlled by the missile after passing through said aperture when the same is in said predetermined point in its path to cause the prize-carrier to move toward a predetermined position.

3. In a game apparatus,.in combination, a table for a rolling missile, having an escape opening for the missile, a moving target adjacent to said opening, having a missile aperture which is carried past the escape opening as the tar et moves, a support for the target, prize-dc ivering mechanism, and means in the path of the missile after passing through said aperture in the target and connected with the prize-delivering mechanism for causing said mechanism to operate when the missile comes in contact with said means.

4. In a game apparatus, in combination, a table for a rolling missile, having an escape opening for the missile, a target adjacent to said escape opening, a support on which the target is mounted to revolve on a vertical axis, said target having in its edge portion a missile-aperture arranged to be carried past the said escape opening to register therewith, the target also having in its central portion a recess to tra missiles failing to pass through the missile-aperture, and

r'ize-mechanism having controlling means in the path of missiles which pass through said missile-aperture.

5. In a game apparatus, a table for a roll ing missile, having an escape openin the table being inclined with respect to t e escape opening, a target disk mounted to revolve on a vertical axis adjacent to said escape opening andhaving a missile-aperture to receive the missile issuing from the escape predetermined point in itsv opening, prize-delivering mechanism, and

means controlled by the missile after-pass irig through said aperture to actuate the prize-delivering mechanism.

6. In a game apparatus, a downwardly inclined table for a rolling missile, having an escape opening at its lower end, a revolying -target having a missile-aperture, arranged to carry the missile-aperture past the escape opening periodically, a chuteto receive the missile after the same has passed through the aperture in the target, prizedelivering mechanism, and means insaid chute, for actuation by the missile, to control'the prize-delivering mechanism.

In testimony whereof I hereto aflix my signature.

FRANK SCHULZ. 

